Soft annealing hammer heads?

S

Scaniaman

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Jun 15, 2012
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I would like to soft anneal some ball peen hammer heads to make them easier to work on. Making a small batch of straightening hammers.

Can you suggest a protocol for the furnace?
 
Normalizing at 850° C
Then annealing at 740° C for 30 minutes, shutting the oven off and letting it cool with the hammer head in it
Worked well for me and made it pretty easy to drill
 
I do what Hoss suggested.
Sub-critical anneal at 1250°F/675°C.
I put it in the oven for the afternoon while I'm in the shop and turn it off when I go in for the day. It is ready to drill or grind in the morning.
Even if I plan on re-shaping them as special hammers, I still anneal first.
Harden at 1550°F/845°C.
Temper at 450-600°F/230-260°C.
 
I didn't do all that fancy annealing stuff when I made my carbide ball straightening hammer. I took a torch, heated the part I wanted to drill red hot (didn't even remove the handle), air cooled and it was then soft enough to drill. Pressed the carbide ball in - all done.
 
If you have a TIG welder, just light up on the spot you intend to drill until it gets good and hot, and then wrap it in a welding blanket till it cools. Should get it soft enough to drill. Same principal as Ken H torch method above, just a different heat source.
 
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